Butterfield Bank & The Loren To Provide Free Meals

The Bank of Butterfield is donating $150,000 for a programme with The Loren to deliver healthy meals to senior citizens and vulnerable persons in Bermuda during the Covid-19 health crisis, with the programme set to begin on Wednesday.

A spokesperson said, “The Bank of N.T. Butterfield & Son Limited and The Loren Hotel at Pink Beach announced that they have initiated an urgent meal programme to deliver healthy meals to senior citizens and vulnerable persons in Bermuda during the Covid-19 health crisis. The programme will begin on Wednesday, 1 April.

“Butterfield will provide $150,000 in initial funding for the purchase of food. 500 meals will be prepared daily by The Loren’s culinary team and distributed to a network of local churches and community organisations who have identified elderly and in-need persons. The meals will be distributed daily until at least 30 April. The programme will be extended as needed.

“Bermuda has taken extraordinary measures to prevent the spread of Covid-19. Those emergency measures, whilst necessary and prudent, have unfortunately resulted in business closures and layoffs, which will strain household finances. Social distancing measures have resulted in some community care programmes being suspended. Food security for some households is threatened during this period.”

Michael Neff, Butterfield’s Managing Director – Bermuda, said “Working with The Loren, and some of our local churches and community organisations, Butterfield is doing our part to help with this situation. We will cover the costs of preparing 500 meals per day at The Loren. The Loren will deliver those meals to the churches and the Eliza Doolittle Society, and they will then distribute them, ensuring to maintain appropriate social distancing measures.

“Bermuda has supported Butterfield for 162 years, and we are doing what we can to support the people of Bermuda during this time of heightened need. We have lowered interest rates on personal loans and mortgages and introduced automatic payment deferrals on personal and small business loans, residential mortgages and credit cards. Together, these measures will leave an estimated $55 million in the hands of businesses and consumers over the next three months to help with financial strain and keep funds flowing through the Bermuda economy.”

Stephen King, owner of The Loren, said, “Since opening our doors in 2017, it has been our pleasure to serve not only visitors to our island, but also to host celebrations, family dinners and get-togethers for local residents. We are proud to have become a part of the fabric of this community, and have a great team of Bermudian employees, as well. We owe a debt of gratitude to Bermuda for our success, and we want to help islanders however we can during the Covid-19 period.

“While this is a difficult time for the hospitality industry, we are fortunate to have the management, culinary resources and kitchen capacity to be able to help ensure our community’s most vulnerable residents are taken care of.”

A spokesperson said, “The Loren and Butterfield also expressed thanks to The Right Reverend Nicholas Dill, Anglican Bishop of Bermuda for coordinating the efforts of churches and community organisations island-wide to assist with daily meal deliveries.

Bishop Dill said, “At this critical time in our nation’s life, when out of a desire to provide necessary protection from the effects of the Covid 19 virus, many lives and livelihoods are at stake and the community as a whole needs to come together, showing generous support and unity and protection for the vulnerable: our seniors, the unemployed and homeless.

“One way of helping protect this community is to ensure that everyone has enough food, without the worry of how to finance and provide for it. I commend this joint venture between Butterfield and The Loren hotel, alongside the many other initiatives in play at this time. We as a community of churches and community groups across the Island have the locations and support networks to help ensure this food gets to those who need it most and are honoured to play a small part to help our fellow Bermudians stay healthy and have their basic needs met.

“As it says in the Bible, faith without deeds is dead – and what good is it to say be warm and well fed – if you are not also providing food? Our thanks go towards those involved in this initiative – the sponsors and the volunteers. Thank you to all who have offered help by their generous giving. May we all be inspired to play our part by this example.”